Riding off to 'the great adventure'

When 16-year-old country boy Frank Ballantyne sails off to World War I with his beloved horse Daisy, he is looking for adventure, some medals and the admiration of his sweetheart's parents.

Morris Gleitzman's latest book, Loyal Creatures, began as a performance piece to accompany a 2012 production of War Horse by Britain's National Theatre, which wanted to tell the story of Australian horses in World War I.

The plot of Loyal Creatures is simply told, but the book will entertain and engage readers aged 10 to 12.

Gleitzman gives a good idea of what World War I was like for Australia's young combatants, some of whom were only a little older than the readers his book is aimed at. (Countless 16-year-olds like Frank lied about their age so they could take part in "the great adventure".)

Thousands of Walers, as the tough Australian horses were known, sailed from Australia during the "great adventure" and never made it home.

Soldiers like Frank were equally loyal creatures, riding into the carnage of war and sacrificing their innocence and, often, their lives for king and country.